Chemical Process Analysis and Modeling Case Studies: Liquid Diffusion and Thermodynamic Considerations

Two case studies completed under the direction of Jacobs Engineering are presented and discussed. In the first case study, the economics of the installation of an oil cooler are examined. A vapor recovery unit (VRU) for an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) facility in Grieve, WY, will be installed to capture the vapors from an oil tank. With the installation of the VRU, a question arose: would an oil cooler proposed to be installed before the oil tank be necessary? A simulation and economic analysis of the process suggests that oil cooler installation is still economically favorable. When the low pressure (LP) separator is operated at the typical temperature of 140°F, nine additional barrels of oil per day (BOPD) are recovered through the use of an oil cooler. The net present worth (NPW) of oil cooler installation is calculated to be $248,000. In the second case study, an overfill protection line was proposed to be installed for a gas flotation unit on an offshore oil rig. It was postulated that there might be a risk of hydrocarbon diffusion through the stagnant liquid in the line, presenting a hazard to equipment and personnel. Calculations were performed to approximate the rate of gas flux through the line. As the physical situation is difficult to model without precise information, alternative preventative methods are presented

Antenatal Genetic Studies

The Antenatal Genetic Testing Program at MCV began in 1973. The standard scheme for antenatal genetic testing involves counseling, the methods of carrier detection available, ultrasound, amniocentesis, and laboratory evaluation. Patients are referred because of a family or personal history of a genetic abnormality or because they have been evaluated in a carrier detection program like those for Tay-Sachs disease or Sickle Cell disease and are known carriers. After referral, patients are given genetic counseling by me and members of the Department of Human Genetics; if antenatal genetic testing is deemed appropriate, we obtain informed consent and proceed with an ultrasound study. The primary reason for doing an ultrasound study prior to amniocentesis is to detect twins. Twins are most likely to be in separate amniotic sacs and have different karyotypes; therefore, fluid must be obtained from each sac

Oral care during pregnancy: an educational intervention

Purpose: Interprofessional collaboration can help prevent adverse pregnancy outcomes related to poor oral health. This study was conducted to see if an educational module provided by a dental hygienist (DH) could increase the knowledge and confidence of physician assistant (PA) students with preventive oral care for the pregnant patient. Methods: A one group mixed-method approach was used in this research. Pregnancy and oral health knowledge were assessed using a 9-item pretest and posttest survey. Participants completed the pretest, were presented an educational module, and were asked to complete an immediate posttest. A second posttest was sent via e-mail to the participants three weeks after the educational module concluded. Pretest and first posttest answers were compared for statistical significance. The first posttest and second posttest were compared for participants’ knowledge retention. Results: A total of (N=54) participants were included in the research study. The mean posttest score was statistically significantly higher than the mean pretest score (p \u3c 0.001). The results from the pretest and first posttest show a statistically significant increase in knowledge. There was also a slight increase from 4.16 (SD= 0.51) to 4.22 (SD=0.47) in mean scores from the first posttest to the second posttest indicating knowledge retention. Conclusion: A pregnancy and oral health care educational module is an effective method to increase knowledge and confidence for PA students

EDUCATION Elementary, Secondary, and Adult Education: Provide for Fingerprinting and Criminal Record Checks of Prospective Education; Provide for Sanctions Against Students for Damage to State-Provided Class Materials; Provide for Voting Requirement for School Boards

The Act provides for fingerprinting and criminal record checks of persons to be employed as teachers or principals in the state school system. The Act further provides sanctions against pupils who fail or refuse to pay for lost or damaged textbooks, library books or media materials which are the property of the State. Finally, the Act specifies the number of members of local boards of education required to vote to take certain actions

EDUCATION Elementary, Secondary, and Adult Education: Provide for Fingerprinting and Criminal Record Checks of Prospective Education; Provide for Sanctions Against Students for Damage to State-Provided Class Materials; Provide for Voting Requirement for School Boards

The Act provides for fingerprinting and criminal record checks of persons to be employed as teachers or principals in the state school system. The Act further provides sanctions against pupils who fail or refuse to pay for lost or damaged textbooks, library books or media materials which are the property of the State. Finally, the Act specifies the number of members of local boards of education required to vote to take certain actions

Three Essays on Corruption and Collusion

This dissertation studies corruption and collusion with data derived from a laboratory experiment and household data. In Chapter 1 I study experimental procurement auctions with bribery and a public reserve to test for the tacitly collusive equilibrium described by Compte et al. (2005). Three sellers compete for 40 periods to sell a single item to a computerized buyer who accepts bribes and determines ties in bids and bribes randomly. In the closing periods, only 13.5% of auctions display the collusive equilibrium, but 58.7% of selling prices are noncompetitive. In comparison with simulated predictions for auctions that are corrupt but competitive, the mean selling price is 6.2% higher, efficiency is 35.2% lower, and the mean subject profit is 464% higher. Confusion leads to imperfect collusion, though some subjects learn to bid higher by observing bids. Men are more likely to bid the reserve. In Chapter 2 I present a method to detect corruption using only household data. I apply stochastic frontier (SF) analysis to measure the degree to which corrupt Chinese households underreport their income in comparison with other households, assuming the resultant differential is illegal income. Corrupt households on average underreport their income by 10%. I compare my results and method to those of Zhong (2018), who uses the same data but another method. Our results are similar, though only SF analysis 1) provides evidence of statistical significance, and 2) addresses endogeneity. My method provides an easy way to quantify the relative corruption between groups, regions, and countries. In Chapter 3 I apply the method of Chapter 2 to an Indonesian dataset. I find that the true incomes of public-sector households are, on average, about 50% higher than their reported income. I then divide the sample to support the findings of Martinez-Bravo et al. (2017), who exploit the fact that district mayors of the Suharto regime could finish their terms during the democratic transition, leading to exogenous variation in corruption exposure. When I restrict my sample to shorter-exposed districts, my measurement falls to 37.1%; when I restrict my sample to longer-exposed districts, my measurement rises to 56.2%

Paradox for the church: time-limited counseling tools for pastoral care

https://place.asburyseminary.edu/ecommonsatsdissertations/1414/thumbnail.jp